Jan 15th, 00:00

Once again, a natural disaster has struck a place that is least equipped to deal with the aftermath. All of us, I know, have been deeply touched and moved by the horrific images coming out of Haiti and of the level of devastation and despair that is being endured by the people of that island nation. Of course, the media does a very good job bringing us the human suffering angle along with the stories of survival and hope and of course what local and national aid is being rendered. I venture to say that before last Tuesday few of us gave any thought to Haiti. Let’s be honest, Haiti is not on the radar because it has no oil, no diamonds, and few natural resources worthy of the world’s attention. Ninety-five percent of the population is black and 80% is Catholic. While other Caribbean nations just off the Haitian coast are known for their five-star hotels, white-sand beaches, and fancy drinks with umbrellas, Haiti continues to languish in despair, extreme poverty, and a lack of a functioning government. Now to be fair, that reality is not the fault of the United States and we know that the U.S., U.N. and many other organizations have provided humanitarian aid to the people of Haiti. Now that disaster has struck, billions of dollars will be poured into the country and for a week or two the American media will continue to focus on the plight of the people. It is sad and unfortunate that it always seems to take a horrific disaster to get the world’s attention. Wouldn’t it have been better to provide the help to Haiti before the earthquake so that there were proper roads and infrastructure, building codes, a functioning government, and other basic human needs? One report even noted that Haiti had no fire department! Of course we cannot save everyone, and of course there is a limit to what and how much we can give individually and collectively. What is so terribly troubling is the disconnect and disparity between the richest and poorest nations in the same hemisphere. Many have asked about Jews in Haiti. There are no synagogues or any organized Jewish community. The Joint Distribution Committee reported earlier this week that there were seven known Jews on the island and that they were all safe. Of course, it is likely that there are many more Jews who kept their religion to themselves. Nonetheless, we hope that they are safe as well. I know many of you want to provide help. I urge you to make contributions only to reputable organizations, and I would suggest our local Orange County Federation (www.jfoc.org) or the Union for Reform Judaism (www.urj.org) both of which have set up special Haiti Relief funds that earmark your donation for that cause. We will continue to hold the people of Haiti in our prayers and we can only hope that, despite the tremendous loss of life and destruction, the people of the nation will ultimately survive and persevere. Tonight at Temple is our early service at 6:00 PM followed by a catered dinner (reservations required) and our program at 7:30 PM, California State Long Beach professor Arlene Lazarow, who will speak on the topic, “Has America been good for Judaism? Issues of Acculturation, Adaptation, and Assimilation.” Tomorrow, no religious school on account of the holiday weekend, but we will have Torah Study and the Shabbat morning service as usual. Tonight’s service will be broadcast on the Internet at www.templebethtikvah.com (click on Live Services).